Short answer: buy double locking. A ratchet bar is faster to set and a pin is a more positive engagement, but the real difference is redundancy — a double-locking stand has two independent mechanisms, so no single one is the only thing between the car and the ground. The cost of that second mechanism is trivial.
How the mechanisms compare
| Ratchet bar | Pin and post | Double locking | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed to set | Fast | Slow | Fast |
| Height options | Every tooth | Drilled holes only | Every tooth |
| Matching two stands | Depends on tooth pitch | Trivial — count the holes | Depends on tooth pitch |
| Engagement type | Pawl against sawtooth | Steel pin through the column | Both |
| Redundancy | None | None | Two independent locks |
| Main failure concern | Pawl not fully seated, worn teeth | Pin not pushed home, bent pin | Both, but one backs up the other |
The ratchet bar, honestly
A sawtooth column drops through a housing and a spring-loaded pawl sits against a tooth. Lift the handle to release, let it drop to engage. It is fast, it is adjustable at every tooth, and it has been the standard mechanism for decades because it works.
Its two genuine weaknesses: a pawl can be left resting on the very tip of a tooth rather than seated at its base, and the teeth themselves can deform over years of load if the stand has been abused. Both are visible if you look — which is the argument for inspecting stands before every use rather than for avoiding ratchets.
Tooth pitch decides how well two stands match
A coarse ratchet means the nearest available setting on each side may differ by most of a tooth, which leaves the car very slightly twisted. Hein-Werner's 11/16 in increments are fine enough that this effectively disappears. This is the detail worth paying for in a ratchet stand.
The pin and post, honestly
A steel pin passes right through a drilled column. There is no pawl, no spring and no partial engagement — the pin is either through the hole or it is not, which is exactly the property you want in a lock. It is slower, and you can only set the heights the holes allow.
That fixed-position limitation has an underrated benefit: matching two stands is a matter of counting holes. On a pin stand you can be certain both sides are at identical height, which is harder to guarantee on a coarse ratchet.
Double locking, and why it wins
A double-locking stand is a ratchet stand with a separate safety pin that passes through the column independently of the pawl. You get the ratchet for speed and the pin for certainty, and either one alone will hold the load. Nothing else available at this price buys as much margin.
What to inspect, per mechanism
The short version
- Ratchet: teeth for rounding or deformation, pawl spring for tension, pawl sitting fully at the base of a tooth
- Pin: pin straight and unbent, holes not elongated, pin passing fully through both walls of the column
- Both: base welds for cracks, column for bending, base sitting flat on a level floor